7. Apply the sleeve from the unit. Reusable sleeves made of washable Neoprene and nylon are generally used, although vinyl sleeves intended for single use are also available for application when concern about cross-contamination arise. The Neoprene and nylon sleeves can be machine washed in warm water and air dried or dried at low heat in a drier. The sleeves provide intermittent or sequential compression, depending on their design. Single-chamber sleeves provide intermittent compression only, and sleeves composed of a series of overlapping chambers can inflate sequentially, starting distally and progressing proximally, to produce a milking effect on the extremity. As noted, sequential compression has been shoe to result in more complete emptying of the deep veins and a greater increase in fibrinolytic activity than single-chamber, intermittent compression and therefore is preferred of most applications, although it has not been shown to result in greater acceleration of venous blood flow than single-chamber compression.
Both single-chamber and multichamber sleeves are available in a variety of lengths and widths for treatment of upper or lower extremities of various sizes. When a compression pump is used for the treatment of edema, it is recommended that the sleeves be long enough to cover the entire involved limb, so that fluid dose not accumulate in area of the limb proximal to the end of the sleeve. When a compression pump is used for the prevention of DVT formation, calf-high sleeves can be used because both have been found to be effective for this application.